Company Sets Up Online Water-Use Tracking

Published 7:00 pm, Thursday, March 6, 2003

City water customers can now track their water consumption online to help them conserve and avoid higher bills this summer.

Even though snowpack levels have risen in the past few weeks, Aurora still plans water restrictions to help bolster reservoirs that are 27 percent of capacity.

Customers can go online at www.auroragov.org/water and view monthly water consumption at their residence or business for the years 2000, 2001 and 2002, city spokeswoman Melissa Elliott said.

Aurora water customers normally use about 6,000 gallons of water per household per month in the winter and 22,000 gallons per month during the summer, when lawns are being watered.

The city will implement surcharges for excessive water use May 3.

Under the city's tiered rate structure, a customer's monthly allotment of water will be based on the average gallon amount used this past winter for indoor use, plus a fixed outdoor rate for watering trees, shrubs and lawns. Any water used above the allotment will trigger surcharges.

More than 2,600 residents and businesses signed up for the online program in the past six weeks after the city sent announcements to water customers in January.